Another Reason to Eat Healthy…That You May Not Have Thought Of

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We’ve all heard the reasons to eat healthy, Do it for your heart, You’ll regret it later, Set a good example. But there’s one that’s often forgotten about, and if you’re a Christian, it should probably be the first reason you turn to.

           

            Our bodies don’t belong to us. They belong to God.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 says:

                        Or do you not know your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you

                        have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So

                        glorify God in your body.

ESV

Now, if you’re like me, this verse is the last thing you’re thinking about when you’re at the grocery store and that box of garlic bread jumps out at you, begging to be bought. But this should change. Our bodies are a gift.

Let’s look at it this way. Your best friend has a birthday coming up, and they always get you really nice gifts on your special day, not to mention they’ve always been there for you when you needed them. So, are you going to return the favor and try to get your best friend something you know they’ll love, or are you going to wrap up that candy dish you broke last week?

I don’t know about you, but the broken candy dish wouldn’t be the first thing I turned to. But when we fill our bodies with junk food and unhealthy crap, are we not giving God, who gave us the greatest gift of all—life—that broken candy dish? Are we not taking the easy way out and giving Him less than He deserves?  

I’m not saying I eat healthy, in fact, I don’t. My latest purchase was a greasy pizza. But I use to.

About six months ago I went to a dietician because I knew my diet was the absolute opposite of healthy. Turns out, it was actually worse than I thought, filled with enough fat to give me a heart attack within 20 years. Not great news for a college student. So, together we worked out a plan that would fit my picky eating style and my body’s nutritional needs.

It went great at first. I went all in, actually spending time looking at the nutrition labels and trying to decide what would be best instead of simply being drawn by the bright colors and what sounded good.

And then I cheated. I let myself have that pizza I had been craving.

(Let me say here, there’s nothing wrong with a few unhealthy foods every once in awhile as long as the majority of your choices are healthy).

But the problem wasn’t that one cheat, it was the growing number of them that came after. Within a few weeks my diet was back to how it had been before I had seen the nutritionist, and that’s how it remains.

And I’ve been feeling guilty. This junk I’ve been feeding my body is in no way serving God for all of the amazing blessings he’s given me. I want to serve Him in every aspect of my life. I want to glorify Him through taking care of myself.

I want to find something better to give Him than that broken candy dish.

So, here it is, a recommitment. To eating healthy. To making better choices. But mostly, to serving a God who has given me the greatest gift I could have asked for—life.

Care to join me? You don’t have to be perfect, and you don’t have to completely give up that chocolate cake you love. Just start with one tiny aspect. Drink milk instead soft drinks. Try a new vegetable. But most importantly, just try. Try serving God in a new way, a healthy way.

Here’s to eating healthy. Not for us, but for Him.

Written by Taylor Neal.

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